1866.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. . 5 



and of members of the Society, in extending the Society's collection 

 of human crania. The Government of Bombay has replied favorably 

 to this application, and the Society has already received some contri- 

 butions from private donors, and promises of further aid which augur 

 favourably for the success of the undertaking. Dr. Anderson has also 

 commenced the formation of a collection of casts of the head and bust 

 of the various aboriginal races of India, and such foreign races as are 

 to be found in Calcutta, or can be procured elsewhere. Similar casts 

 of some of the monkey tribes have also been taken, and will be added 

 to, as opportunity may serve. The reptilian collection has been ex- 

 amined, compared, and catalogued by Mr. "W. Theobald, Jr., and the 

 catalogue is now in the press preparing for publication. Some speci- 

 mens have also been presented to the collection by Mr. Theobald. 



The collection of Madrepores which, like the Invertebrate collections 

 in general, (with the single exception of the shells arranged and cata- 

 logued by Mr. Theobald, in 1860) have hitherto been in a sadly 

 neglected state, unnamed and unarranged, and so small in number as 

 most inadequately to represent this important fauna, even for our 

 own coasts, have been cleansed, and will shortly be arranged, together 

 with a fine series from the Arracan coast, presented by Mr. Theobald, 

 in a case or cases specially provided for them. Mr. Atkinson has pre- 

 sented a fine series of Lepidopterous insects, but these again cannot be 

 exhibited, until the insect cases, long since ordered, shall arrive from 

 home, and be placed in the museum. It has hitherto been a reproach 

 to the museum, that but one, and that the smallest, of the five sub-king- 

 doms of animated nature, has been at all adequately represented. The 

 collection of Mollusca, which stands next in order, is equalled if not 

 surpassed, by more than one private collection in Calcutta ; of the 

 greater part of the Annulosa, nothing worthy of being called a collec- 

 tion exists, and the same must be said of the Echinodermata and 

 Protozoa. Of the sub-kingdom Ccelenterata, the corals, already men- 

 tioned, are the only representatives. The Council earnestly desire that 

 attention may be given to providing some more worthy representation 

 of these neglected departments of Indian Zoology, and invite the dona- 

 tions of members with a view to this end. They have hitherto abstain- 

 ed from making any such appeal, being aware that the limited means 

 of the Society did not admit of their providing for the preservation 



